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The Easiest, Cheapest Way to Stay Healthy

Day in Health

An easy action that takes just 20
seconds can cut your risk for catching a cold, flu or other contagious diseases
by up to 51 percent, recent studies show. And if everyone made it a regular
habit, one million deaths a year would be prevented, according to the Centers for
Disease Control, which calls this habit the single most important way to
avoid spreading infection.

Frequent hand washing with soap and
water can save you money—and misery—by helping you avoid medical bills, missed
workdays, or having to stay home with a sick child. And you’ll also protect
your friends and family: A CDC survey found that 40 million Americans a year
fall prey to illnesses spread by hands, which can harbor up to 500,000 bacteria
per square centimeter.

Clean Hands Save Lives

Not only does lathering up protect
you from respiratory illnesses like colds, but it also helps ward off more
serious conditions, including hepatitis A, meningitis, and potentially
life-threatening superbug infections, such as MRSA. Overall, 80 percent of all
infectious diseases are spread by touch.

Here are just a few research
findings that illustrate the protective power of clean hands:

When 40,000 Navy recruits were instructed to
wash their hands five times a day, their rate of respiratory infections fell by
45 percent, according to a study published in American Journal of Preventive Medicine.

A 2011
study found that when students disinfected their hands three times a day
with ethanol gel sanitizer, there was a 66 percent drop in pupils who missed
four or more days due to illness and a 20 percent rise in students with zero
absences, compared to data from the previous year.

Hand washing reduces risk for colds and other
respiratory illnesses by 21 percent, according to the CDC.

Washing with soap and water lowers risk for
diarrhea and severe or fatal intestinal infections by up to 59 percent, a
systematic review published in Lancet
reported.

Our Dirty Little Secrets

Ninety-one percent of Americans say
they wash their hands after using a public toilet, but an observational study
conducted in the six US airports found that only 26 percent of men and 17
percent of women actually did. And here’s something to ponder before you shake
someone’s hand during cold and flu season: A recent survey also found that only
24 percent of men and 39 percent of women always wash their hands after they
cough or sneeze.

Hand hygiene among doctors is even
worse, with 73 percent of pediatric ICU physicians claiming that they soaped up
between patients, but when the MDs were secretly observed, only 10 percent
actually washed. If doctors and nurses were more diligent about hand hygiene,
up to 80,000 Americans lives would be saved each year.

When to Wash Away Germs

To stay healthy and avoid spreading
germs to others, the CDC and other experts advise washing your hands before and
after preparing food, before eating, after changing diapers or using the
toilet, after sneezing, coughing or blowing your nose, after touching an
animal, and after touching garbage.

Follow these simple steps:

Wet your hands with clean, running water (warm
or cold) and remove jewelry. A recent study compared bacteria counts on the
hands of 50 healthcare workers who wore rings to 50 who didn’t. Hand washing
lowered levels of staph bacteria by nearly 50 percent for those without rings,
but only 29 percent among ring wearers.

Lather up with soap. Avoid antibacterial
products, which don’t work any better than regular soap, according to the Mayo
Clinic, and can even lead to bacteria becoming resistant to that antimicrobial
ingredient.

Rub hands together for at least 20 seconds. To
get the timing right, kids can recite the alphabet as they scrub. Pay equal
attention to all surfaces of both hands: Research shows that righties don’t
wash their right hand as carefully as the left, while the opposite is true for
lefties. Fingernails and fingertips typically harbor the most microorganisms.

Rinse thoroughly under running water—the force
of the stream sweeps dirt and germs down the drain. And be sure to dry well,
which helps rub away remaining microbes. A study published in Epidemiology and Infection found
that when people touched someone else with freshly washed, but damp hands, they
transferred a whopping 68,000 microorganisms, compared to just 140 when their
hands were dry.

The CDC says that while soap and water is best,
hand sanitizers containing at least 60 percent alcohol can do in a pinch.
However, they don’t eliminate all types of germs.

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